Weight Gain even when I ate under the calorie level?!

foxbat2828

Hey guys,

During the past 6 months I've been using my fitness pal, sometimes I'll workout really hard, burn a lot calories, and then at the end of the day when I stay under my calorie goal; I wake up to find I've gained 2 pounds!!

Is this normal?? Can I actually gain 2 pounds in a night? I don't know what is happening, does someone??


Love,
A concerned college girl

A couple of things to check as I had the similar issue when I thought I was eating healthy, cutting back, and working out.

Measure out the food that you are eating if you aren't already doing so. I was going by estimates ... like a 3 oz. portion of meat is the size of a deck of cards. When I started weighing things out, I started realizing that what I thought was 3 oz. was actually 3 1/2 or 4 oz. Same thing with simple things like pasta helpings, etc. Those extra ounces add calories really quickly if you don't keep an eye on them.

Be careful using MFP's exercise estimates on things. Some of them are fairly accurate, but some of them are way off ... on the high side. I find this true on the lower end items like light cycling or light walking. Whenever possible, use a HRM to get a better estimate of what you are really burning or punch in the numbers for weight, etc. if you are working out at the gym to get a better idea of what the true calorie burn is.

Lastly, sodium. The more processed food you are eating, probably the more sodium you are getting. In a single Lean Cuisine meal you could easily be picking up a 1/3 to 1/2 or more of your daily sodium recommendation. Some soups and salad dressings can do the same thing. If you are getting too much sodium, your body's going to hold on to more water/liquid. Making sure you get enough to drink throughout the day will help flush this stuff out, but even with good water consumption, if you have too much sodium, the water will "hang around" in your body.

QuentinHardage

Wife is on low sodium plan, so my meals have almost no salt. I must take salt with water after workouts, for my exercise regimen is demanding; so i have problems with dehydration. I use Himalayan Pink Salt or natural sea salt. Problems of constipation, headaches, and formation of kidney stones are relieved with hydration and salt in water after vigorous exercise.

QuentinHardage

My recommendation is to consume bulk of carbohydrates at breakfast and lunch, having more protein for supper. First meal of day should be higher in calories and decrease for each meal of the day.

Exercise requires more calories giving the body and mind satisfaction. Natural organic foods are better. Eating holistically with exercise makes one feel great, but to loose weight one must burn more calories than consuming. Rather than eating less with no exercise and becoming depressed and unhealthy, I prefer eating well with exercise or just plain movement.